Around Asia: Chinese official fired after son’s opulent wedding

A low-ranking Chinese official in a Beijing suburb was reportedly sacked over a lavish three-day wedding for his son, the latest government crackdown on corruption and waste.

Ma Linxiang, a deputy village chief in Qingheying, was removed from his post for “wasting” 1.6 million yuan ($260,000) on his son’s wedding, including ferrying guests in luxury cars and hiring well-known entertainers.

About 250 guests attended the three-day ceremony held at a convention center used as a venue for the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

The local Communist Party discipline inspection commission in Chaoyang district found no evidence that Ma had used public funds for the wedding. Ma also said the bride’s family had paid for most of the ceremony. Officials said they are still investigating the case.

But the extravagance of the celebration during the National Day holiday drew most of the criticism amid calls by the government not to flaunt wealth that could hurt the ruling party’s image.

Many expressed support for Ma’s removal. One user of Sina Weibo, China’s version of Twitter, said “such slugs must be removed from office.”

Others raised question where Ma got his wealth to shoulder even a portion of the grand wedding.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has vowed to tackle corruption among officials—from the powerful “tigers” to the lowly “flies”.